The present invention relates to the registration of internet users at websites.
Before using many websites, internet users need to fill in an often cumbersome registration form providing personal data. Site owners require this information for marketing purposes and to personalise the offering to customers. Registration demands can range from the basic requirement of a name and email address to a detailed request for personal information including street address, employment details and even salary levels. This process gives rise to a number of problems for users. Registration is often slow and not intuitive, with an additional problem that formats differ from site to site. Once registered with more than one site, users also have the problem of keeping track of the different user names and passwords that they use. When a user""s information changes (email, addresses etc.) the management of multiple registrations becomes unwieldy. Furthermore, users have little or no control of information released to sites which can on-sell the personal data leading to both a breach of individual privacy and, perhaps inevitably, an accompanying barrage of unwanted direct marketing emails or xe2x80x9cspamxe2x80x9d.
A typical internet user may be registered with between four and ten sites and would probably register with one new site each month. The greater these numbers the more serious the problem becomes. New users and sites are coming to the internet at exponential rates of growth so this problem can only get worse.
Though necessary for their business model, registration also poses a major problem to site owners. Users quite often enter bogus information (often several times having forgotten their password and thus having to register anew), which is of no use to site owners whilst bearing a data storage cost. Bogus information is entered for a number of reasons: frustration with the speed of the registration process, a general mistrust of the security and subsequent use of the data, or simply because the user has forgotten the previous registration details. Indeed, as much as 50% of all consumer data held by major sites on the internet is estimated to be false. Even genuine registration data becomes inaccurate over time if it is not up-dated.
Another problem is that users frustrated with the registration process will stop before completion so that the site loses a new potential customer. It is estimated that over 50% of potential users are lost due to aborted registrations.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, in an arrangement comprising at least one computer network connecting at least one personal computer to at least one service computer, the personal computer being associated with at least one user, a method for managing the registration of the user with the at least one service computer, the method comprising the steps of:
gathering registration data for the at least one service computer;
storing the registration data in at least one data structure on at least one registration agent computer connected to the computer network;
gathering personal data for the user;
storing at least part of the personal data in at least one data structure on at least one registration agent computer connected to the computer network; and,
in response to a request from the user to a registration agent computer connected to the computer network to register the user with the at least one service computer, submitting an application to register the user with the at least one service computer by transmitting registration information from at least one registration agent computer to the service computer, the registration information being compiled from data obtained by accessing the users personal data stored in the associated data structure and by accessing registration data for the service computer stored in the associated data structure.
The service computer may be a product-provider and/or an information-provider.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in a method for registering a user at a client node of a communications network with at least one server node connected to the communications network by the use of at least one registration agent server node connected to the communications network which stores personal data associated with the user together with registration data associated with the at least one server node, the method comprising the steps of registering the user with the at least one server node in response to a user request received at the registration agent server node by completing and transmitting on behalf of the user a registration application from the registration agent server node to the at least one server node based on the personal data associated with the user and the registration data associated with the at least one server node.
Preferably, the computer or communications network utilises an internet protocol.
Preferably, each of the service computer or server nodes is a website having a server connected to an internet or intranet. Preferably, the at least one registration agent computer or registration agent server node is connected to an internet, intranet or internet protocol (IP) network.
Preferably, the at least one registration agent computer or registration agent server node is a World Wide Web server.
Preferably, the at least one registration agent computer or registration agent server node operates a World Wide Web site.
Preferably, the step of transmitting an application to register the user is preceded by the step of verifying a user identification and more preferably, a password, entered by the user which identifies the user with respect to the associated personal data.
Preferably, the method includes the steps of storing personal data in the form of a master user profile data structure which uniquely describes the user, together with a number of personal registration data structures, each of which describes registration data associated with the successful registration of the user with a service computer or server node. The personal registration data structures permit repeat visits to the service computer or server node without the user having to go through the registration procedure again.
Preferably, the method includes the step of accepting user inputs which define a privacy policy in relation to the user""s personal data which describes the extent to which the personal data is to be released for the purpose of submitting a registration application.
Preferably, the method includes the step of providing a unique proxy address for the user in a registration application so that communications addressed to the user using the unique address are received by the at least one registration agent computer or registration agent server and are subsequently forwarded to the user. More preferably, the communications are forwarded to the user in dependence on an email filtering policy accepted by the user. Most preferably, a different proxy address for the user is allocated for each subsequent registration with other service computers or server nodes.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for managing the registration of a user in accordance with either one of the first and second aspects of the present invention, comprises:
means for storing registration data;
means for storing personal data;
means for receiving a user request to submit a registration application on behalf of the user to a remote site;
means for completing a registration application based on a combination of personal data associated with the user and registration data associated with the remote site; and,
means for transmitting a completed registration application to the remote site on behalf of the user.
Preferably, the apparatus comprises a computer storage medium containing computer executable instructions for performing the method of either one of the first and second aspects of the present invention. More preferably, the apparatus comprises a server. Most preferably, the server is arranged to provide a website having a unique resource locator (URL).
In one example, the present invention provides a registration agent site which presents a simple intermediary between sites and internet users that acts a single source of data entry, user name and password for users. This allows users to register with new sites automatically and move between registered sites via a single interface, whilst allowing changes in profile information via the same interface. The registration agent site acts as the agent for the internet user rather than the site owner, allowing registration by proxy in a manner which is transparent to other sites. The agent negotiates connectivity and connects the user.
In terms of the internet user, the benefits of using the interface provided by the registration agent site can be summarised as follows: the interface provides a convenient way of navigating between sites since it is necessary to remember only one password; the interface provides an effortless way of registering with new sites; it offers the ability to effect a global change across sites; it provides for the control of privacy by allowing the user to define a privacy policy; and, it allows for the integration of email filtering by proxy to prevent xe2x80x9cspammingxe2x80x9d.
The registration agent site provides a central repository of all personal information that an individual internet user is, at least to some extent, prepared to give out to sites in order to register with the site. Personal details particular to each site registration are stored as well as a master profile of all personal information. This information can be recalled and modified via the interface. Accordingly, the user of the interface will know what personal information has been given out and to whom as well as the totality of information given out to all sites. Users are able to impose specific controls on how their personal information is used to register with a site including the complete prohibition of the use of certain information, provided this does not conflict with a site""s registration requirements. If there is a conflict, the interface allows this to be resolved by deferring to the user for a final decision.
Referring to FIG. 2, in summary, the service that the interface of the registration agent site 10 provides is one of assisting internet users to complete registration forms for websites by proxy, and logging into their sites on repeat visits. The user does not have to retype information, can have different profiles, can automatically check privacy policies, can review what data has been given out and to whom, and can protect their email address. Indeed, a key component of helping users control their interaction with sites is to protect their email address from being abused by the sites they give it to. The present invention""s registration processing system 11 offers the option to give protected email addresses to sites when a user registers through the interface. The site does not receive the user""s real address, but is instead given a unique proxy address by the registration processing system 11 (a different one for each site). Email sent to that address is forwarded by the registration processing system 11 to the user""s email account. This allows users to selectively cut xe2x80x9cspammersxe2x80x9d off without having to change their email address. It also allows users to identify which sites are giving their email addresses to third parties which use it for xe2x80x9cspamxe2x80x9d.
In summary, the service that the interface of the registration agent site provides is one of assisting internet users to complete registration forms for websites by proxy, and logging into their sites on repeat visits. The user does not have to retype information, can have different profiles, can automatically check privacy policies, can review what data has been given out and to whom, and can protect their email address. Indeed, a key component of helping users control their interaction with sites is to protect their email address from being abused by the sites they give it to. The present invention offers the option to give protected email addresses to sites when a user registers through the interface. The site does not receive the users real address, but is instead given a unique proxy address (a different one for each site). Email sent to that address is forwarded to the users email account. This allows users to selectively cut xe2x80x9cspammersxe2x80x9d off without having to change their email address. It also allows users to identify which sites are giving their email addresses to third parties which use it for xe2x80x9cspamxe2x80x9d.